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Thursday, August 30, 2012

A Reader's Opinion: Big Sky Mountain by Linda Lael Miller

The Book

(Blurb from Goodreads)

With his rugged good
looks, vast wealth and family name, hell-raiser Hutch Carmody is still
the golden boy of Parable, Montana. But he's done some growing up—making
peace with his illegitimate half brother and inheriting half of Whisper
Creek Ranch, which should have been all his. These days, Hutch knows
there are some things money can't buy: like the heart of loving,
ladylike divorcée Kendra Shepherd.Kendra's quiet mansion reminds her of
what she wants most—a devoted husband and the pitter-patter of little
feet. She can't get Hutch Carmody out of her mind. But a
rough-and-tumble cowboy like Hutch, coming home for family dinner? Seems
crazy! Then again, crazier dreams have become reality under the vast
Montana sky

A Reader's Opinion

Linda Lael Miller's historical western romances have always been
among some of my favorites. This is the first of her contemporary books I
have read and I have to admit, it just didn't read like the author
whose books I've enjoyed in the past. Our hero, Hutch Carmody, starts
off a little rocky, but ends up finding his footing after an unfortunate
incident of calling off his wedding as he's standing in front of a
church filled with guests. I feel I may have missed some much-needed
back story on some of the characters by not reading the first book in the
series, but part-way through I was able to catch up with them.

Our
heroine, Kendra Shepherd, is a likeable character who has her
priorities straight when it comes to putting family first. I like her
connection with her adopted daughter and I thought the story of how the
girl came to be with Kendra, was interesting, but it also said a lot for
Kendra's character. The attention to the characters was divided among
many, to the point that Hutch and Kendra at times seemed secondary. I
would have liked more dialogue from both Kendra and Hutch. There was so
little that the chemistry didn't have a chance to build properly, so
that when the graphic love scenes did take place, I quickly skipped over
them because it just didn't seem real.

I live in small-town (and
cute town) Montana and even I found the "cute" names of the businesses
and streets a tad over-done. I understand it's fiction, but it was
distracting enough to where I didn't feel the town could have been
real.

I felt that the relationship between Hutch and his brother was the most developed and the most enjoyable. I found myself wanting to know more about both Slade and Boone.

Don't
get me wrong, Miller is on my favorite's list, and there she will stay,
but I think I'll stick with her historicals from now on. For those who
enjoy Miller's contemporary western romances, you'll likely enjoy this
story and the series.